Always
by Vaerin7
Summary: Naruto is having demon troubles... the mating type.  He needs an Alpha, but Sasuke is human.  Well, they thought he was.  Sasuke falls ill and Kakashi is in charge of him.  When he turns, will Naruto be the one he takes or will it be another?


Always

It's been too long, the constant nagging feeling in his gut slowly eating away at him. He needs to get this curse off his chest, needs to finally tell the one that caused it that it's all their fault and he hates them for it! The only problem is… he doesn't hate them and he can't bring himself to say anything. He's tried, don't get him wrong, but whenever those endless black orbs look into his own oceanic ones… he loses the words and nerve. He's always tried to be selfless, never letting himself be happy at the expense of another's happiness, but he's still young and it's okay to be selfish every now and then… his mommy told him it was.

It's late tonight, closer to midnight that he thought it was, and Naruto can't bring himself to go home. He's been having troubles that he's been wanting to talk to Sasuke about, but every time he's thought to bring it up… his mind automatically provides the vision of a bloodbath with Sasuke's seething form standing amongst a thousand bodies. It's not that he doesn't trust his best friend, because he does, but that his best friend is a tad too overprotective for his liking. If a dominant so much as looks at him wrong, they could find Sasuke's fist embedded in their face in a heartbeat. So, halfway there and planning out what to say, Naruto finds himself stalling for about two hours or so by the lake near Sasuke's house. The trees cover the area and Naruto feels safe within the isolated area… but there's something nagging at his mind. Someone steps from the trees and Naruto's instincts tell him to run, yet it's only Sasuke.

"What are you doing out here, Naruto? It's awfully late to be roaming."

"Oh, I just… I don't know, I guess I couldn't sleep," Naruto sighs. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with Aria?"

"She's sleeping," he answers quickly. "I felt your chakra signature out here, thought you could use someone to talk to."

"I could," Naruto nods.

By now, Sasuke has walked up very close and has wrapped his arms around Naruto's waist. Naruto expects such things from Sasuke, as they're very close when they're alone, but there's something about this time that doesn't feel right. He shakes it off, Sasuke would never hurt him.

"I've been having problems lately," Naruto murmurs. "Dominants are getting way too pushy, using underhanded tricks that could seriously hurt me. I think I might actually find an alpha to keep them away from me, or at least… I already have one and I have to talk to them about it."

"Already have one, huh?" Sasuke chuckles though its cold. "Who might that be?"

"I don't want to talk about that right now."

"Why don't I calm your nerves, Naruto," Sasuke purrs. "You can forget about your alpha tonight, forget about everything, and focus on me."

"I don't know…"

"I'm your best friend, aren't I? you trust me? I would never hurt you."

"… I know, but…"

Sasuke pulls him into a deep kiss, something different from their first kiss and the others they've shared on missions where they were forced to 'date'. Naruto doesn't like this kiss, it's not familiar, and he instinctually pulls away. Sasuke shushes him, pinning him against a tree and pushing forward. Naruto is getting nervous, Sasuke's hands already undoing the belt he wore today with no intentions of listening to his protests. He cries, frustrated and scared and unable to bring himself to hurt Sasuke in order to get away. That's when the warmth against his body is yanked away, the blonde falling to his knees as he cries. He looks up to see Sasuke standing between him and… a demon. The demon's façade of his best friend slowly melts away, leaving a familiar fire demon that learned a few shinobi talents. Naruto feels stupid, he should've known… he did know… but he kept pushing the warnings aside because of who the demon looked like.

"Naruto-Dobe, are you okay?" Sasuke asks without turning.

"… I… I'm not hurt," he whimpers.

"Go to my house and wait for me there," Sasuke orders. "I'll take care of your stalker."

"But…"

"Go on," he repeats firmly. "It's gonna be okay, I'll deal with this."

Naruto can tell the difference between the two now, the difference in the tone of voice and the hardness in the eyes, and he nods quickly before complying. He barely has time to leave the clearing when Sasuke attacks the demon, the screams of fury and rage and pain between the two drifting after the blonde like a leaf on the wind.

Sasuke is pissed, he can't stand people hurting Naruto physically, but he especially can't stand them hurting him mentally. His blonde friend may be a demon, but he's fragile and Sasuke's seen that side of him. He may have hurt him the same way, and he hates himself everyday for it, but he's swore to make up for it by keeping others from doing the same. He pushed Naruto far, but he's not willing to let another push as far as he did. The demon he dealt with betrayed Naruto's friendship, took his own form to hurt him physically, and almost dominated his partner and friend… he needed to suffer. That's why he locked him in a nightmare with his Sharingan before sending a message to his aniki to talk to Wraith, the shadow snow leopard known as Nightmare Shadow. Wraith hates when dominants use underhanded means to subdue a submissive, especially means like this demon used, so he'll be overjoyed to deal with him further. Itachi favors the blonde as well, as he owes him his life quite literally. He survived their fight and was found by Naruto, who healed him and activated his panther gene… a dormant genetic in the Uchiha line that provides use of the Sharingan. They go blind because it's a demon ability, so humans have to pay a price to use it. When Sasuke learned of this, he was overjoyed… but confused as well. He didn't understand why Itachi preferred to be a demon rather than a human, but he supported the decision and visits at least once on the weekends.

"Naruto-Dobe," Sasuke calls once he gets home. "Please tell me you're here."

"I'm here," Naruto whispers from the living room. "Are you alone?"

"Yeah, I'm alone. Let me check you over, okay? I don't trust your idea of 'not hurt' about as much a I don't trust Kakashi's idea of 'appropriate reading material'."

Naruto is nervous around him, but that understandable. Sasuke takes it slow, allowing him to only show what he's comfortable showing until he catches the cut marks in the hips of his pants. He sighs and gets up, grabbing a blanket and the medical kit he keeps in his bathroom.

"I'm going to turn my back," he explains. "Undress and wrap up in this blanket, but leave room so I can see your hips."

"Why?" he asks immediately.

"You have some nasty gouges in your hips, Dobe," Sasuke sighs. "I need to clean them before they heal and get infected. Come on, when have I ever hurt you… And I'm talking me, not someone that looks like me."

"… I don't want to," Naruto says with tears in his eyes.

"I'm not going to risk your health because you can't trust me," Sasuke frowns. "If you're really that intent on keeping me away, I'll give you a kunai and you can cut me anytime I do something you don't like."

"But you'll get hurt!"

"And I'm willing to risk that," he waves off. "Now, are you going to undress?"

"… Okay, but I don't want to hurt you," Naruto mutters. "Turn around."

Sasuke turns around, keeping his eyes closed and his arms across his chest as he waits. He listens to the rustling of Naruto's clothes, wondering why he'd act so shy when he'd usually streak through the village simply because it seems like the thing to do on a hot day. He and Naruto have gone to the hot springs together, taken showers together, and even washed off beneath waterfalls to the point they had to undress to wash their clothes separate… Having him so nervous getting undressed around him is foreign and seriously not welcome. Finally, he says he's done and Sasuke turns around. His eyes sweep his best friend slightly, searching for anymore wounds he can see, and then he gets out some antiseptic and bandages. He lifts one side of the blanket, Naruto immediately growling in warning before he glares at him and he quiets, and then he starts rubbing on the medicine. It doesn't take him long, but eventually Naruto has stopped growling and he's done bandageing him up.

"What were you doing out there, Dobe? You know those demons are assholes," Sasuke reprimands. "I thought you'd be a bit smarter than that, I mean… you practically wrote rape me with neon green paint on your forehead."

"… Gee, thanks for that," Naruto growls. "I was actually… well, I was thinking about talking to you. There's this thing I want to tell you, but… I'm sort of afraid what your reaction will be."

"You don't' have to be afraid of me, Dobe," Sasuke smirks. "I would never hurt you, you know that."

"I do, but I'm not afraid of you… I'm afraid for everyone else."

"Okay, now I have to know," Sasuke says with a minute smile. "Spill."

"You know I'm Kyuubi's youngest kittling, right?" Naruto scoffs.

"You've mentioned it," Sasuke says.

"That means I'm taught to go by Kyuubi's instincts. Kyuubi goes by ancient demon rules, because she's an old hag," Naruto whispers conspiratorially. "Among some of the ones at the top of my 'could definitely do without' list, is her mating rules. She only takes an alpha that can defeat her in battle, which sparring and play fighting doesn't count. The dominants known this, so they've been laying on the hurt. Unfortunately for them, I've laid it on ten times as bad and they've yet to take me out."

"That doesn't sound like a problem to me."

"You don't get it," Naruto frowns. "now that they know they can't beat me in battle, they've been stooping to some really dangerous stuff that could really harm me."

"Like what?" Sasuke asks sharply, though not because he's mad and Naruto.

"They've tried getting me drunk, drugging me, using traps, and tonight Dante almost succeed by using your face," Naruto whispers. "I can't take this anymore, I don't want to deal with them, Sasuke-Teme. I think… I think I'm gonna have to find an alpha."

"I'm certain you'll find someone," Sasuke smiles minutely. "From what I hear, you're pretty popular… well… It still counts if you're the one telling me, right?"

"Funny," Naruto frowns.

"Come on, I'm tired. You can use the spare room you usually stay in. If you need anything, I'll be across the hall."

Naruto lies in his bed, staring at the ceiling and trying to get his thoughts from his head. Sasuke takes good care of him, protects him and never makes him feel trapped. He gets along well with him, always feels safe with him, and never has to worry about him snapping and beating him… or worse.

*Too bad he isn't a demon, * Naruto muses forlornly.

He sighs and gets up, heading across the hall and sniffing to make certain Aria isn't with him in there. That's something he can seriously do without walking in on.

"Come on in, Dobe, I went to her house," Sasuke mutters half asleep on the other side of the door.

Naruto hurries in, shutting the door afterward and walking over to the dark haired shinobi's bed. Sasuke rolls over and pulls the blankets down on the side he vacated, far too used to Naruto sharing a bed with him to think anything of his actions. Naruto climbs in, scooting as close to him as possible.

"Sasuke," he whispers. "You'll help me look, won't you?"

"What are friends for," he murmurs. "Go to sleep."

Naruto nudges closer, the dark haired shinobi turning around and wrapping him in his arms without thinking. At first, Naruto panics and his breathing comes fast, but after a moment he calms himself and listens to his friend's even breathing. With a sigh, he closes his eyes and allows himself to fall into a fitful sleep smoothed out by Sasuke's presence.

Sasuke wakes late and alone, his mind trying to provide him with some information he can't recall. The minute he does remember that Naruto was attacked by a demon pretending to be him, he can't breathe. After he regains the ability, he also recalls the fact that they slept in the same bed last night. If Naruto was truly afraid to be touched by him, he wouldn't have came to him last night. He gets ready for the day quickly, heading out to find Naruto. He finds him in the marketplace, sitting at a table outside the café their friends have taken to hanging at.

"So, I told him that Itachi was super hot and that he should totally try and mate with him," Naruto rambles on. "I wouldn't mind mating with him, but he's a panther and they're way violent when it comes to sex… although, on some occasions that could be really nice."

"I really don't want to hear about your sick fantasies," Sasuke sighs.

"You don't know anything about my sick fantasies, Teme," Naruto smirks as he walks past to sit beside him. "Hey, are you alright? You don't look good."

"I'm not feeling well," Sasuke mutters. "My head hurts, and my chest… and my whole body. I don't suppose you can cure it, can you, Sakura?"

"Hmm… I'm sorry to say this is strictly demonic, Sasuke," she murmurs after checking him over.

He goes to say something, probably question her, but his face pales and a hand is over his mouth immediately. Naruto sighs, drawing dirt around to form a pot, and hands it to Sasuke. The dark haired shinobi throws up, the others shocked at the sight as he's never been sick before that they know of.

"Sick, dude," Kiba cringes.

"I'll say," Naruto gasps. "Sasuke, this is blood."

They all look to the shinobi's face, drained of color and white as chalk, and gasp when he topples backward. Kakashi is passing at that moment, moving more quickly than they've ever seen him to grab Sasuke inches before he hit's the ground.

It's two days before Naruto even gets to see Sasuke's eyes, as he stays asleep in the hospital with the blonde at his side. Tsunade didn't even try to mess with his condition, immediately calling in the snow leopard triplets from Shadow to care for him. The triplets have a water-based mother and a snow leopard father, so they're very formidable as the oldest of the recently retired demon lord's children. They found a seal on his lower back that cuts off demonic chakra and turns the demon human, but it was only to be used on older demons in their Adult years. Sasuke's was created after he was born, so he adapted and it caused a terrible power struggle once his human power began to hit the point his demon power felt threatened by it. As such, the inner struggle between the two began to kill him literally.

"Am I alive?" he murmurs sleepily.

"Sasuke! Oh my god, I was so worried," Naruto cries. "I thought you were gone for good! Are you feeling better?"

"… Where am I?"

"Konoha's hospital wing," a new voice informs. "But you won't be for long. I'll be taking you to Shadow as soon as I give you your medicine and get you ready."

"… Who the hell are you?" Sasuke growls after a moment of stunned silence.

"I'm Torrent," the tall man with slate tinted silver hair smirks. "I'm Kakashi's oldest brother and the oldest of triplets. We've yet to learn your origins, so you'll be coming with me for training until we can find your father."

"The **hell **I will," he snaps. "This is my home, I'm not leaving!"

Kakashi walks in at that moment, easily snatching the first thing Sasuke could find to throw out of the air before it can beam his brother… which would be a paperweight brought by Sai. He'll definitely have to talk to him about presents people should **never **give Sasuke when he's hospitalized.

"Now, now, what seems to be the problem?" he purrs.

"He wants to take me away from Konoha!"

"Sasuke, Torrent and Wraith are two of the most powerful demons in the world," Kakashi offers. "They're the most logical choice to teach you and bring out your full potential until we can find your father."

"You were mommy's best friend," Sasuke pleads without realizing his speech has fallen into old childhood habits. "Can't you look after me? Then I won't have to leave and aniki can come help, too."

"I'm not very good with cubs," Kakashi sighs. "I could barely teach you three without killing you."

"Please?" Sasuke pouts with large teary eyes.

"… That's just cheating," Kakashi frowns.

"I can add the quivering lip, too," Sasuke glares. "That's how I always got aniki to do what I wanted."

"Fine," Kakashi relents. "But you have to do as I say. From now until we locate your father, I am your legal guardian and I'm in charge of your wellbeing."

"Wow… I feel sorry for you," Naruto murmurs.

Kakashi frowns at that, throwing the aforementioned paperweight and pegging the blonde upside the head with deadly accuracy. So that's how Sasuke became a purebred demon and Kakashi became his temporary father, but Naruto still has the problem of finding an alpha. As soon as Sasuke is discharged that afternoon, Tsunade sends out messages to the Kages and Kakashi helps Sasuke pack for a camping trip. Naruto decides to take on a few alphas while they're gone and busy himself with menial chores while his team is on vacation.

Naruto is back home in Konoha after meeting with a few alphas in the forest when Sasuke returns, laughing it up with Kiba as the Inuzuka gives Akamaru his bath with the blonde… although, just by looking at them, you have to ask yourself who's giving whom the bath. The two boys are soaked and are sitting in the large tub they use for the bath, but Akamaru has slyly slipped out of it and is lying in the grass while the two splash each other. Looking at them, Sasuke can easily tell Kiba is a submissive as well… though he doesn't know how he can tell that. Gaara has recently been there, as well as the other Kages, but yet again he doesn't understand how he can tell. The Kages stride over with Tsunade and Sasuke's yanked to Kakashi's side to avoid their eyesight. Though his training went successful, he's learned a few embarrassing facts about himself. The first is his more childish urges like sleeping with a parent, sucking his thumb, having wild emotions he can't control, and even pouting and throwing temper tantrums. A less desirable thing he's learned, is the fact he's going through his 'second childhood' as Kakashi likes to dub it with **extreme **separation anxiety thanks to the past massacre of the Uchiha clan. He pouts quietly to himself as he turns his attention back to the others.

"Hey, guys!" Kiba calls.

"Want to join us?" Naruto laughs.

"What are you two doing?" Tsunade wonders in exasperation.

"Uh… Giving Akamaru a bath?" they answer in unison.

"Don't you two have better things to do than goof off?" Raikage huffs.

"Not really," Kiba murmurs.

"It's our day off!" Naruto grins.

"Then do something productive!"

"We were! We were giving Akamaru a bath," Naruto frowns. "What's more productive than that?"

"Kages," Kakashi states formally. "I believe you're all gathered to intercept Sasuke and myself at the gate. As you can tell, he's far less dangerous than you'd anticipated."

They look around, but Kakashi motions his head toward the two in the tub. Sasuke is there now, unable to resist the lure of water, and has hopped in to play with his friends. They watch in shock as he laughs playfully, splashing and dunking the other two like a little five year old… not that Kiba and Naruto act any older, but Sasuke is expected to act more mature than that.

"As you can see, Sasuke has finally started acting his age," Kakashi grins proudly. "He's a Newborn in demon years, childish in nature, and suffers from separation anxiety in massive levels."

"… Seriously," Tsunade frowns. "A child that raised themselves from the age of eight and he can't go two seconds without you."

Kakashi, to answer her question, steps a single step away from Sasuke. His body stills, alert and tense before he searches for Kakashi. When he can't see him, as he's blocked by the Raikage's massive stature, he sniffles and starts to cry. Kakashi walks over, gingerly picking him from the water, and hushes him quietly. Once he's quiet, but obviously refusing to let go of the man he now has a death grip on, the silver haired snow leopard demon turns back to them.

"I also learned that I am his biological father… go figure," he shrugs. "Like I was supposed to know Mikoto only slept with me when she was separated from Nori."

"So… what now?" Gaara wonders.

"Well… the only real problem he might have is if he had a mate," Kakashi muses. "And that's only if another was foolish enough to try and take them away. Everyone in Konoha may be tempted to push this more docile version of him, but they know better than to touch something he deems 'his'. I think everyone's fairly safe."

"I take it he'll be with you at **all **times," Raikage frowns.

"I'll know where he is, I'll have someone watching over him," Kakashi nods. "But I'm sorry to say it'll get more difficult as he gets older. Fortunately for demon parents, nature has installed a failsafe in Toddlers to keep them out of trouble for the most part… that's when they start mating. If all else fails, however, I **am **capable of managing his age through demonic jutsu reserved for parents."

"And that would entail?" Mizukage wonders.

"Oh, I simply reduce his age to the desired one," he shrugs. "Anyone wondering how super cute a five year old Sasuke is? I had to punish him on our camping trip when he got angry with my older brother and tried to freeze him, so he got time out in five year old form. And let me tell you, he was **not **happy."

The humor in Kakashi's voice is thick, everyone wondering just how badly Sasuke took it. At the mention of it, his trademark glare has returned along with his pout, so he must've been quite irate.

"So, cub," Kakashi grins. "What are we not doing anymore?"

"… No attacking family members that irritate me," he recites huffily.

"Or?"

"Or daddy's gonna turn me into a baby for a month," he growls. "And let Auntie Ariel baby-sit me."

"That's right!" the silver haired man practically coos. "Because when Sasuke's a bad cub to my siblings… I get the brunt of it for three months."

The last part is said blandly, almost as though the feeling of his siblings' wrath still lingers on his skin. Naruto sits with Kiba in the tub, both still watching Sasuke cling to Kakashi while Kiba attempts to withhold his giggles.

"Sasuke-cub, I'm going to have to suggest I change you into a five year old if you insist on clinging to me," Kakashi muses after a moment's thought. "As it would be a terrible hit to your human pride should everyone witness you… uh… **not **acting your human age."

"… Okay," he mutters.

A light tap to Sasuke's forehead and a poof of smoke later leaves a five year old Sasuke clinging to Kakashi's leg for dear life, the silver haired male grinning at the cute pouting face before scooping him up into his arms.

"Isn't that just the cutest freaking thing you've ever seen?" he grins. "Just look at that little cherub face trying to go bad, it's adorable! He looks just like his mother."

"I'm not a girl!" Sasuke shouts in a far less authoritative voice than before.

"Ma, ma, sorry," Kakashi snickers. "I didn't mean you were."

"Kakashi, please take Sasuke home with you," Tsunade sighs. "Although he is super cute right now, I have a feeling his temper is still the same."

"Oh!" Naruto gasps. "I have to go, Kiba! I'm late for a date with Kai!"

Sasuke's eyes narrow, Kakashi catching the action before he hears the furious growl that accompanies the glare. As Naruto runs off after pulling on his clothes, Sasuke's eyes of black ice follow him almost possessively.

The next morning, Sasuke is back to his older form and Kakashi is napping in a tree as he practices… or, at least, Kakashi **looks **like he's napping in a tree. Naruto is arguing with someone close by, but the young Hatake, now that he's taken on his father's name, has always let him resolve his own problems unless he asks for help. The short yelp of pain is what catches his attention, however that's followed by a female screaming a war cry of bloodlust and a male begging for forgiveness he doesn't sound like he's receiving. Sasuke shrugs, deciding to ask Naruto about it later, and goes back to his practices. The touch of cold that sends tingles up his spine alerts him to an intruder of the shadow demon variety.

"Uncle Wraith is here," he states quietly.

"You're getting better at this," Wraith muses as he emerges from Sasuke's shadow sprawled across the ground. "I'd say you were a natural… but that goes without doing so. What are you practicing?"

"Projectiles," Sasuke smirks.

"Sasuke, you're supposed to be practicing levitating your element for two hours!" Kakashi snaps. "When the hell did I tell you to practice projectiles?"

"When I asked you if I could the minute you were absorbed in your book and you said 'Uh huh, sure, whatever'," Sasuke says innocently. "Levitating a ball of water and changing it's form to ice and then gas is boring, I didn't want to do that for two hours."

"Should've been paying more attention, baby brother," Wraith chuckles.

"I had expected something like that from Naruto, not my own cub," Kakashi frowns. "Although, now that you've managed to work on that for over fifteen minutes, how is it coming?"

"I can make a pincushion bomb… is that what it's called? A ball of ice needles that shoot in every direction?" he wonders. "It sounds good."

"Yes, but can you control the projectiles after they're released," Wraith asks.

"They're over there," he points.

Small glittering points of ice fly through the air like birds, weaving through the trees as they practically dance upon the wind. Wraith is thoroughly impressed that Sasuke can teach himself to do such difficult things, as usually only older Infants and younger Toddlers can learn something so advanced… and that's with instruction from an Adult. Sasuke has the genius of the Hatake clan and also that of the Uchiha clan, so he's likely to be the first prodigy within their family aside from Kakashi.

"Tomorrow I'll teach you how to manipulate the shadows," Wraith whispers.

He pats his head, ignoring Kakashi's questioning look as he shoos Sasuke back into the village. Sasuke has already gotten used to having to leave so Kakashi can discuss 'grown up things' with his older siblings. Unfortunately, Kakashi has nine older siblings, so the interruptions are quite frequent. With a huff, he heads out to find Naruto in hopes he'll be available to talk or just hang out. He finds him in a clearing by a large lake, skipping pebbles across the smooth sheet of water and causing ripples to stretch across it.

"Hey, Dobe," Sasuke grins.

He turns to face him… and his grin is violently killed by his glare. Naruto has a black eye that turning a wicked purple, his bottom lip split and still bleeding. Sasuke stares a moment, trying to recall if they had a fight or not earlier, and then decides someone else hurt him on purpose… which means he's about to hunt them down.

"What happened to you?"

"… I don't want to talk about it," he pouts.

"Well, I do."

"… An alpha punched me," he growls. "So I kicked his ass. Are you happy?"

"Is that the female I heard a few minutes ago?" Sasuke laughs. "When I thought it was an actual girl, I was pretty intimidated by the war cry. But now I know it was you, that's hilarious!"

"It wasn't me!" Naruto blushes. "It was Hikari! I have a bloodline limit called 'split persona' and now you know why I don't brag about it. It give consciousness to both the male half of my sex gene and my female half, giving me many abilities… and even more side effects. Hikari is far more violent than myself, more kitsune than I could ever hope to be, and… I think she may be a tad insane."

"Sounds fun," Sasuke smirks. "So… who hit you? Was it Kai?"

"No, not Kai," Naruto sighs. "Kai's a sweetheart. It was Tori. He's a panther demon and isn't used to people telling him 'no'. When I told him I didn't want to be his mate, he got a little physical. When I managed to throw him off me, he socked me good in the eye and set off Hikari… she can't stand people hurting me. I can't tell you how difficult it was to keep her from going all out on **you **when you were the enemy."

"You should've let her," Sasuke mutters bitterly. "Maybe it would've knocked some sense into me."

"Yeah, well… I liked you too much."

"Naruto, you need to find a good alpha," Sasuke sighs. "Can't you think of anyone that might take good care of you? Not one person that could protect you to my liking?"

"… Your liking?" Naruto questions. "Why yours?"

"Because you think you can do everything yourself and won't ask for help," Sasuke points out. "But I know when to leave you be and when you're in over your head. Whoever you choose has to know that, or they'll drive you crazy. You simply can't be a pure submissive without rebellion."

"… You could be my alpha, can't you?" Naruto wonders quietly. "I mean… I know you don't want to settle down and stuff, but I think that's why we'd be good together. I don't want an alpha, you don't want a mate, but that balances us out… you know?"

"… I'll think about it, Dobe," Sasuke sighs. "Until then, were can I find Tori?"

"I'm not stupid enough to tell you that," Naruto frowns. "You'll tear him up just as badly as Hikari, if not worse. He barely survived **her**, why would I loose **you **on him as well?"

"Because I'm asking you nicely where I can find him," Sasuke purrs.

"… Damn you and your persuasive voice," Naruto sighs. "He'll be at the Leopard's Spot bar and inn."

"Perfect, I know exactly where to find him," Sasuke smirks. "See you later."

Naruto is home when there's a knock at his door, Kai standing on the other side of his door when he answers it. The water demon seems miffed about something, walking in when invited and immediately beginning to pace in the kitchen. Naruto makes them some tea, thankful Sasuke took him shopping the day before so he could get 'suitable food' as Sasuke put it.

"Okay, Kai, what's going on?" he sighs as he sets the tea down.

"You didn't hear?" he gasps. "Where have you been the last couple days?"

"I've been dealing with unwanted dominants," Naruto frowns. "not to mention a best friend that's taken his training to a new level… I.e. strengthening his speed by chasing me down all day. For the last couple days, I've been tailed by Sasuke, who loves the whole 'cat and mouse' game by the way, and pinned after hours on end of pretending to fall behind when he catches up! He's driving me nuts! I know people say kitsune like the chase, but that's only when it's impossible to catch us and Sasuke's made an art form of catching me!"

"Calm down, Naruto," Kai murmurs. "Look, a couple days ago, a new demon came to the Leopard's Spot. He was crazy powerful, man. I mean, like, the shadows actually reached for him to bathe in it."

"Yeah, right."

"I'm not kidding, he's way dangerous! He walked straight up to Tori like he owned the place, reached up behind his head, and slammed his face into the table so hard it broke in half! A demon ten times his age!" Kai shouts in shock. "I thought Tori was gonna kill him, or beat him down into submission or something. Instead, they walked outside and I followed. They were talking quietly, but the threat hung in the air thick… I almost passed out from it."

"What were they saying?" Naruto wonders curiously.

"The new demon was angry Tori hurt you, but Tori said he would've done more if Hikari hadn't surfaced. That got the other demon furious, but his voice was still calm," Kai informs. "The other demon only looked at Tori, watching as he fell to the ground screaming. He sat down calmly and quietly, took out a book, and read until Tori can to his senses about two hour later. Afterward, he told Tori you were his and any challenges were to go through him from now on… or he'd make his nightmare a reality. Tori was so pale… I thought he was gonna pass out. The demon told him to pass on the information, because the next one that hurt you was gonna get it twice as bad… and then he'd take it out on Tori as well. I've never seen him move so fast."

"What did this demon look like?" Naruto wonders.

"Black hair with silver streaks, cold black eyes, and skin that looks like moonlight," Kai muses. "He was… beautiful."

"Don't say that to his face… or within range of his hearing," Naruto laughs.

The door opens after a single knock, startling Kai as he's never known anyone to just walk into the blonde's apartment. The same demon that he was just talking about strolls in like he does so everyday, steps past them in the kitchen obliviously, and opens the fridge.

"You're out of onigiri," he muses. "And I thought we agreed no more pop."

"Uh… It's Kiba's," Naruto remarks. "Seriously, he visited yesterday and left it here. Said I didn't have anything good to drink."

"… I'll buy that," he smirks as he turns to face the blonde. "Who's that?"

"Oh! This is Kai, my friend from the other day," Naruto blushes.

"The one you had a date with?" the demon frowns.

"It was a play date," Naruto blushes. "We're both submissive."

"Ah," the snow leopard nods thoughtfully. "Cool. So, did you want to hang out today? Your friend can come if he wants."

"I was just leaving," Kai murmurs. "I just wanted to bring Naruto up to speed on demonic news. Nice meeting you… uh…"

"Sasuke," the dark haired male smirks. "Hatake Sasuke."

"Like, as in, Kakashi Hatake? The Hatake clan of royal blood? That Hatake?"

"Yeah, that would be about it."

"You're the little heir!" Kai gasps.

"I suppose," Sasuke muses. "But don't go spreading it around, it's embarrassing."

Kai nods stupidly, backing out of the door and shooting off like a bullet. Naruto closes the door, glancing back at the only person he doesn't mind barging in like he just did not long ago. They both each traded a key to their homes, making certain the other had a place to crash when they needed it, so it hasn't been unusual for Sasuke to stroll in after Naruto's asleep or vise versa. Ever since the older shinobi was reinstated and they smoothed things out in their friendship, they've alternated staying over at one another's house.

"So… I heard you were at the Leopard's Spot the other day."

"Yeah, so what?"

"I'm yours, huh?" Naruto states. "Since when did you decide that without me?"

"Hmm… just after telling you I'd think about it," Sasuke smirks.

"Thanks for the heads up."

"You were the one that said we'd be good for each other," Sasuke points out. "Now… mind if I stay over? Daddy put Uncle Gale and Uncle Gust on babysitting duty tonight, but they're petrified of Hikari and won't come near here."

"I don't mind," Naruto laughs. "But… why do you want to get away from them?"

"They've been trying to give speeches about the 'joys of mating'," Sasuke scoffs. "Not my type of thing, I'd rather experience it than talk about it… which I have, a lot. So, what are you up to?"

"Nothing at all," Naruto sighs. "Can't think of anything to do and Kiba is on a mission, so he can't hang out with me."

"I thought I was your best friend," Sasuke frowns.

"You are, but Kiba and I are like minds," Naruto grins.

"Well… I can think of plenty of things to do," Sasuke purrs.

He steps closer to Naruto, leaning forward after barring his escape and licking his neck. After the initial gasp of surprise, Naruto grins like the kitsune he is and does something he never dreamed of doing with an alpha… he bares his neck. Sasuke pushes him closer to the wall, wrapping his arms around him tightly and kissing him deeply. He's demanding, but Naruto can tell if he backs away he won't be punished for it and that's what he likes. He wraps his legs around Sasuke's waist, silently telling him he wants more, and Sasuke carries him into the bedroom. Clothes are strewn throughout the room, moans fill the small area, and the two get to know one another in ways they can't when sparring. When Sasuke enters him, he can't breathe. When he starts to move slowly within him, he moans as he thinks how like a predator he moves even now. Every touch, every whisper, every groan is filled with the safety the blonde can only find within his best friend's presence… something that can't be copied no matter how skilled a demon may be. It isn't long before Sasuke's thrust become hard and fast, moving the bed with the force even as they turn erratic in his need. Naruto's claws are digging into his shoulders, both now in their demonic forms with the tails of a snow leopard and fox entwining and their animalistic ears laying flat in their pleasure. Finally, Naruto can't hold it anymore and he comes between them with a soft mewl. Sasuke slams roughly into him a few more times, biting down harshly on his neck and shoulder junction as he plants his seed as deeply within the blonde as he can. His thrusts turn slow and shallow, riding out his pleasure as the white fades from his vision. He slowly moves away from Naruto, lying beside him and pulling the smaller body against his own.

"Hmm… I always wondered why the girls fought over you," Naruto smiles.

"Now you know," Sasuke chuckles. "I excel even in **this **area."

"Teme."

They fall asleep together, dreaming of each other… and what he can do to his blonde later, on Sasuke's part. It's a few hours before someone gets up the nerve to wake them, the knocking on the door soft and hesitant as Sasuke growls angrily at being woken. He slips on a pair of boxers he found somewhere by the dresser… thankfully his own… and heads to answer the door after washing up his abdomen. When he opens it, he sees Hinata glancing behind her as though she wants to run.

"What's up, Hinata?" he wonders.

"Oh! Sasuke, I thought that… are you staying here?"

"Yeah, for the night," he shrugs. "What can I do for you?"

"Well… someone asked me to get Naruto for them," she murmurs. "But… they look kind of shady to me. I don't like them. I was going to warn Naruto, but… well… I'll warn you instead."

"No problem, Hinata, I'll take care of them," Sasuke smirks. "Why don't you head home, Naruto will be safe with me."

"Are you going to go see them?" she wonders.

"Nah, I'll let them come here… if they're stupid enough, that is."

She nods and walks away, but Sasuke stops her halfway to the door to the neighboring apartment.

"By the way, Dante, you need to work on your impressions," he smirks. "You really suck at them. And if it weren't for the fact you were impersonating me, Naruto never would've fallen for it."

The Hinata impersonator glowers as they change back, eyes of crimson glaring at Sasuke though he's anything but affected. Sasuke closes the door resolutely, heading back in to the bedroom to curl up with his new mate. He knows Naruto doesn't mind if he stays with his secondaries, as that gives him time to himself, but Sasuke will be hard pressed to do so… Naruto is his, always has been and always will be.

Kakashi listens to the excuses of his two older brothers, his bored eyes, mismatched in color, straying to Itachi as the other gazes out the window. Sasuke has been missing Itachi terribly, always asks about him and always goes to bed asking to see him. Sasuke has, ingeniously, learned what it takes to evade his siblings… leaving Kakashi with only one solution aside from putting a leash on his wily cub and hooking it to his belt.

"Itachi, I want you to return to Konoha with me," he announces.

"… What?"

"Sasuke's learned how to wheedle information from my siblings, so, therefore, has also figured out how to avoid being watched by them," Kakashi informs. "As such, I can't keep an eye on him as well and need an alternative means of watching him."

"You really shouldn't have expected anything less from him," Itachi smirks.

"Is that a yes, then?"

"Might as well," he chuckles. "I, above **all **else, should know how to deal with him. So… how'd he manage to avoid your all powerful siblings?"

"… He went to Naruto's house," Kakashi sighs. "The boy's a fast learner."

Itachi goes back with Kakashi, stopping in Tsunade's office to explain everything Kakashi didn't… which was a lot… and then heading off into the village. He no sooner sets foot outside the Hokage tower, that he's almost slashed mercilessly across the face with elongated claws of black. Sasuke and Naruto are fighting, progressing slowly through the village and just missing Itachi. He sighs and reaches into the gathering cloud of dust, yanking two cubs apart and holding them at arm's length so they can't reach one another. Naruto and Sasuke glower angrily at each other, growling low and dangerous.

"Might I ask what this is all about?" he sighs.

"**He **started it!" they both yell in unison. "Did not! It was **your **fault!"

"And yet… that still doesn't answer my question," he frowns.

"… Aniki!" Sasuke cheers happily.

His attitude changes so quickly Naruto's head spins and he loses the edge to his rage, tossed into confusion and attempting to figure out when anger turned to happiness. Itachi, however, almost melts at the sight of the little Sasuke he left behind hidden within those cold eyes.

"Otouto," he smiles minutely. "I've heard you've been quite a nuisance to Kakashi's siblings… good work."

"I didn't try to," Sasuke pouts. "They're just so… overbearing!"

"Yes, they can be that way," he laughs. "They raised Kakashi, after all. Now, what were you two fighting about?"

"… I forgot," Sasuke muses. "I think it was important, though."

"Really. How important can it be when you can't remember what it is?"

"That's a good question," Sasuke gasps. "I'll tell you when I figure out the answer, okay?"

"Teme!" Naruto snaps. "We were fighting, because my Rasengan totally blows your Chidori out of the water!"

"That's not true, my Chidori makes your Rasengan look like child's play!"

"You're just jealous that I'm stronger than you!"

"Hell no! I'm your **alpha**, dipshit, I fucking dominate you and you're **yet **to prove otherwise!"

"I'm gonna kick your ass!"

"You and what army, Dobe!"

"Funnily enough, that was exactly how this started," Kakashi muses as he walks up. "Word for word, actually."

Itachi tosses Sasuke easily to Kakashi, keeping a hand on Naruto's collar to keep him under control. He knows from experience that his more volatile persona refuses to surface if Itachi is touching Naruto… mainly because she's quite taken with the older Uchiha and gets jealous when Naruto gets attention from him, which leads to her refusing to help him fight.

"Cub, I know you and Naruto like rough one another up in order to get in the mood. However, I think it only fair to tell you that I will have to manage your age to five again if you continue," he says. "Five year olds cause far less damage than a hormone hopped up teenager."

"Daddy!"

"Your dad is so embarrassing," Naruto whispers.

"Come on, Otouto," Itachi sighs. "Let's get you two away from each other so you don't get yourself in trouble."

"Naruto's my mate, I have to be around him… at least until I'm tempted to kill him," Sasuke mutters. "I haven't had the urge yet."

"So, was Aria good, Teme? Or were you just that desperate?" Naruto smirks.

"Okay, let's go," Sasuke growls. "I'm feeling the urge."

A few days later, Sasuke has Naruto pinned to his kitchen table as he drives into him with a possessive growl. Naruto hisses back, snapping when he gets close to his neck and mewling when a thrust comes particularly hard in return. When he wakes up on the kitchen floor, he knows he has Sasuke to blame when pain races up his spine. He looks at the slumbering snow leopard angrily, but it soon melts to affection as he reaches over and brushes a stray lock of silver streaked night from his face.

"Hmm… what is it?" he mumbles.

"Nothing, go back to sleep," Naruto smiles.

"We should get up," Sasuke yawns. "We have to meet the guys in a few minutes, don't we?"

"Probably, but they're not shy about coming to get us."

"Yeah, sure," Sasuke frowns. "We should get ready."

Their friends are waiting at their usual hangout, laughing and talking like any other day they see them. Naruto notes that Kai is with them, gossiping with Kiba and Ino no doubt about demonic affairs. When they see Sasuke coming with Naruto, everyone groans and hands their money over to Sakura.

"What's going on?" Naruto wonders.

"I won the pot!" Sakura grins. "I said you two were totally together and had already had sex more than once, but they didn't believe me."

"I really fail to see how it's any of your business," Sasuke remarks.

"I'm like your guys' sister, it's totally my business," she gasps feigning hurt. "Especially, if I have the opportunity to win this much money!"

"I already started another pot this morning," Kai grins happily. "The winner is the one who can guess when Naruto gets pregnant first… or, the closest, at least."

"Naruto's a boy, he can't get pregnant," Sasuke frowns.

"… You didn't tell him?" Kai asks a blushing Naruto.

"I was going to… but… well… he wanted to do other things."

"Like you didn't want it," Sasuke scoffs. "So, about this ability of yours."

"I can have children in any form," Naruto sighs. "But you have to meet requirements I'm not allowed to have anything to do with… it's basically hit or miss."

"Sounds fun, let's start," Sasuke grins. "After all, it could take us a long time to figure it out."

"You are **so **not touching me," Naruto growls.

"Can't you take a joke?" Sasuke smirks. "Like I want kids right now, I'm not even an Infant yet. Technically, I'm not even supposed to be mating."

"Let's keep it that way," Naruto frowns.

"Sasuke-cub, time to go," Kakashi calls as he scoops him up on the way by.

"Hey! I was just trying to convince Naruto to breed with me!" he whines.

"Good luck with that," Itachi scoffs. "He's already had an argument with Hikari about that. She's insisted she's not about to lend any of her feminine abilities to him if she doesn't get her choice of mates as well… which would be me. I don't know about you, but I don't like sharing."

"I must've gotten that from you, aniki," Sasuke smirks. "Oi, Naruto-Dobe, come on! You can come with us, okay?"

"Sorry, Sasuke, I can't hear… Ouch! Teme!" Naruto screams after Sasuke hits him with the book he keeps in his pocket. "It's not a big book, but it still hurts!"

"Come on, I don't want to go on my own."

"You have Itachi."

"He'll be gone once we get there! He has things to do."

Naruto sighs and relents, knowing he'll regret in on some level later. Sasuke grins happily, glad to know exactly how far he can push Naruto before the fox starts getting rebellious. So what if he has to wait for cubs, he has no problem with that. So what if his family seems to be a tad crazy, at least his dad seems more down to earth now. So what if every day is filled with challenges by lesser demons, he gets stronger with each one he beats. Naruto is his, always has been… always will be.


End file.
